Viridor acquires Wyvern for £25 million

The move sees the waste disposal company which Somerset County Council formed in 1992 become part of one of the leading players in the UK market.

VWM will now be responsible for managing the countys 18 household waste recycling centres, composting food and garden waste and dealing with hazardous and electrical equipment waste.

It will also operate the countys three landfill sites at Dimmer, Walpole and Williton as well as running waste transfer stations and dealing with the haulage of waste in the area.

Somerset County Council leader, councillor Cathy Bakewell said: We want to retain our pre-eminent position among waste authorities in the UK a position we are proud of and we see this new partnership as key to that. WWS has been a very successful company under county council ownership, but Viridor will bring added expertise and investment in new waste treatment facilities.

The important thing to stress is that Somerset residents, businesses who depend on this service and the communities who live near the operational sites will see no immediate changes to the excellent waste services they already receive.

VWM has used an innovative Public Private Partnership to fund the move and will be responsible for the development of new waste treatment facilities that will increase recycling rates and divert more municipal waste away from landfill.

VWM chief executive Colin Drummond said: The acquisition of WWS fits very well into Viridors strategy of expanding its recycling, disposal and renewable power generation business in key regions of the UK.

We look forward to welcoming our new colleagues on board, to benefit from and further develop the expertise, professionalism and local knowledge that they bring to help deliver our common objectives.

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